, 1887-03-24
ABRAHAM LiNcoLN's KINDNESS.
Tho Only President Who Would Examine
the Real wants Of tho People.


Tic Only President WHO Would Examine
the Real wants Of the People.
"Abraham Lincoln said Judge
Kelley, Of Pennsylvania, who is the
father of the House of Representatives,
"was the most patient man In the de.
tails of life / ever saw. He was the
only President we ever had, and prob
ably ever will have, who knew nothing
of the common autocracy of public
life. / remember an incident in con-
nection with the war which illustrates
what I am trying to say. 1t Is not
proper for me to use names, but the
story goes: 1t was at that early period
in the rebellion when suspects and con-
spirators were being arrested and inn
prisoned by the wholesale. A letter
written upon printed sheet of paper,
giving the business of prominent
firm of merchants in New York and
containing incendiary language toward
the Union, found its way into the
hands of Government official in the
South. The declarations were penned
by q travelling man, who represented
the firm mentioned in the letter-head.
The result was the arrest of the princi-
pal member of that firm on the charge
of conspiracy against the Government.
The letter was signed in such u way as
to not make 1t perfectly clear who the
author was, and, of course, suspicion
bore heavily upon the firm mentioned.
He is man well known in New York
to-day. Men were held In prison at
that time on the slightest suspicion, in
fact, more slight than this one. The
wife of the merchant came to friend
of mine In New York Immediately
after the arrest of the husband, and re-
quested him to communicate with
President Lincoln the fact that her hus-
band had been arrested for something
for which he was In no way responsible.
My friend addressed note to the Presi-
dent, telling him that the man under
arrest was not guilty OF the n,isde-
meanOr even in collateral or the most
remote way. The wife came to Wash.
HStoii, ~ Woo IL W uCtl oltC dA~
rived. At the depot she told the cab
man to drive to the White House. The
driver expostulated with her, and told
her that it was of no use to call at the
White House at such late hour of the
night. She said II made no difference,
she wanted to see Mr.. Lincoln, and that
he must drive her Immediately to the
Executive Mansion. When she present
ed herself at the entrance to the White
House it was midnight. Everything
was quiet. The Gordon of police, very
stormy at that time. turned ont in full
force. They would not listen at first to
her entreaties to be admitted to the
I White House. Finally, SHE prevailed
upon one of the officers to take the let
ter of introduction she had to President
Lincoln, who was then asleep. A min
ute after the President had been
awakened his voice was heard in the
corridor on the upper floor. He had
the letter In his hand, and the tremor
up it indicated his feeling.
=" Mis-. ---., this ease demands imme-
diatr action, said Mr.. Lincoln. if you
will take my arm, We will go immedi-
a.ely to Secretary stanton Across the
lots ut rapid pace went the President
and the lady. Stanton was aroused
from his slumhers shown the letter by
the President and requested to release
the prisoner. He wrote a dispatch and
handed it to Mr.. Lincoln, and said he
would attend to the matter further in
the morning.
Like Il lackey boy, the President,
with the lady, started toward the down
town hotels. 1t was O'Clock in the
morning, Washington was titled with
revolutionists and would-be assassins,
yet Mr.. Lincoln never faltcred and
seemed not to comprehend his danger.
When he arrived ut the hotel. with the
lady ON his arm, he told her to go to
her room, sleep soundly, return to New
York in the morning, and that her hus-
band would meet her on the dock. The
lady could not believe it. but Mr.. Lin
coin assured her that such would he the
case. The President then went to the
telegraph Office, filed the message, which
demanded the unconditional release of
the prisoner, and returned to the White
House alone. Sure enough. when the
lady alighted from the ferry at New
York the next day her husband was
there to embrace her. l am inclined to
believe the millennium will come before
we shall have another President who
would do such an act us this"
DOrr's DeSterity.
TO watch Gustaye bore designing his
sketches, says biographer, was enough
to make one dizzy. His fingers fairly
flew over the surface of fhe hlnck and